Try your latte with a shot of art

For poured art, the barista creates a design while pouring the foam. To make etched art, a picture is made with a stick or pick; often chocolate or caramel from a squeeze bottle is added for contrast. Neither lasts in the cup more than about a minute.

When Melinda McDonald stops by The Bean Counter in Springfield, Ill., once a week to meet friends over coffee, the latte she orders comes with a shot of art.

“It’s a real treat. It elevates the latte above the normal coffee drink,” said the Rochester, Ill., freelance writer about the handcrafted design added at no cost to her espresso-and-steamed milk beverage.

Latte art is simply a drawing on the surface of the creamy drink. Typically, it’s a heart, leaf, rosette, fern, feather, flower or snowflake, but it can be as intricate as a landscape, seascape or a portrait. The two primary techniques are pouring and etching.

Microfoam meets crema

In the U.S., latte art was first seen in the 1980s and ’90s in Seattle, where it quickly became the signature flourish in several coffeehouses. It’s now commonly created by baristas everywhere who say it’s fun for them as well as their customers.

“One lady drove off, stopped, opened the lid, saw it, ran back and shouted to me, ‘That’s so cool!’ said Kirk Donley, a barista at Grab-a-Java in Springfield. “It’s an unexpected little flair.”

Donley, 24, first saw latte art when a co-worker at another coffee shop tried it.

“He spent $300 on a class to learn it. I went on YouTube and found tutorials. Then I practiced and practiced. It’s about timing and how precise you are. You need a steady hand and just the right amount of foam,” he said.

That foam, technically “microfoam,” is created by steaming milk. To make latte art, the barista pulls a shot of espresso, which should have a creamy, reddish brown surface known as “crema.” In a cup, the white microfoam is poured into the darker crema. As the foam rises to meet the crema, a contrast is created.

For poured art, the barista creates a design while pouring the foam. To make etched art, a picture is made with a stick or pick; often chocolate or caramel from a squeeze bottle is added for contrast. Neither lasts in the cup more than about a minute.

“The hardest part is getting the milk just right,” said John Vargas, 30, manager of The Bean Counter. “You have to texture it and stretch it.”

Practice makes perfect

McDonald said she tried to create latte art using her home espresso machine, but was unsuccessful.

Most home machines, said Vargas, are not precise enough for latte art. And every step in the process has to be just right; there is little room for error.

He said baristas in his shop attempt to put a design in each latte, but the results vary widely.